A Tuba to Cuba (2018) - doc
A New Orleans brass band travels to Havana to trace the African roots shared by Cuban and New Orleans music. The rhythmic connections they discover illuminate just how deep the Cuban contribution to the Americas runs.
What It Covers
The Preservation Hall Jazz Band travels to Cuba to meet musicians playing traditions descended from the same African sources that shaped New Orleans jazz. The film documents performances, street scenes, and conversations between musicians who realize they've been speaking the same rhythmic language from opposite sides of the Gulf of Mexico.
Why Dancers Should Watch It
For Cuban dancers, this film makes visible something easy to take for granted: the global reach of the Afro-Cuban rhythmic tradition. Watching New Orleans musicians encounter clave and recognize it in their own music is a reminder of what clave actually is — not a Cuban quirk but a fundamental African organizing principle that traveled wherever the diaspora went. The joy of that recognition is infectious.
